City Lit Art School — Art Classes in London
Explore new and exciting subjects within a range of art and design disciplines, develop your skill set, get the support required to change career or launch yourself as a freelance artist or designer. All this and more delivered through our practical and engaging art and design courses at City Lit.
Our range of part-time, weekend and evening art and design classes are taught by successful artists and practitioners to ensure you get the skills, knowledge and experience you want and deserve. From experimental painting and drawing to contemporary jewellery making, there is sure to be a course for you. Study from 1 day to 2 years, whether you are a complete beginner or a practising artist preparing for an MA. Our courses are designed with you in mind, so you get to spend more time doing what you love.
Set a new goal, start your next creative adventure with City Lit and let us support you to realise your ambitions.
We host exhibitions throughout the year at City Lit Gallery where our students showcase their amazing work.
Any questions? Contact our visual arts team on visual.arts@citylit.ac.uk
- Drawing 1
Course start date: Thu 14 May 2026 (and 10 other dates)Location on this date: Keeley Street
Tutors: Andrea VoiseyAn introduction to drawing from observation through a carefully structured approach in a studio environment. Suitable for beginners.Full fee £449.00 Senior fee £359.00 Concession £292.00 - Photography for beginners Course start date: Tue 5 May 2026 (and 17 other dates)
Location on this date: Keeley Street
Tutors: Sara Leigh LewisAlways wondered what half the buttons on your camera actually do? Discover how to use them properly and produce impressive photographs, even as a complete beginner. Gain useful technical knowledge and get expert creative guidance in easy-to-understand language. An ideal first step before enrolling on our intermediate courses.Full fee £389.00 Senior fee £311.00 Concession £253.00 - Contemporary watercolour painting projects Course start date: Sat 23 May 2026 (and 6 other dates)
Location on this date: Keeley Street
Tutors: Anne-Marie FosterThrough a set of short projects inspired by contemporary practitioners and their contribution to the uniqueness of the medium, the course will help you expand your understanding of watercolour and enable you to make informed choices in making personal work. It will also feature some approaches to painting, beyond the immediate western tradition to provide broader technical and critical insights.Full fee £389.00 Senior fee £311.00 Concession £253.00 - 50 drawings in a day Course start date: Sun 3 May 2026 (and 8 other dates)
Location on this date: Keeley Street
Tutors: Mario Lautier VellaA high energy programme of directed and self-directed drawing projects, with rapid shifts in materials, scale, subject and focus. Strictly no discards - come ready to play, risk, invent and discuss. For those with some drawing experience.Full fee £129.00 Senior fee £129.00 Concession £129.00 - Portraits and people photography Course start date: Wed 13 May 2026 (and 4 other dates)
Location on this date: Keeley Street
Tutors: Lorenzo BerniDiscover the secrets of successful portraiture, from the studio-lit portrait to street and documentary photography, or those special moments for the family album. Gain confidence in photographing people through practical work indoors and out, teaching you invaluable skills in lighting, composition and poses, to produce a beautiful portrait portfolio.Full fee £239.00 Senior fee £191.00 Concession £155.00 - Photography, space and architecture Course start date: Mon 11 May 2026 (and 2 other dates)
Location on this date: Keeley Street
Tutors: Michael HardingCapture the architecture of London, from ancient churches to modern buildings in this introduction to architectural photography. Learn about the history and development of this specialist genre then venture onto the streets and spaces of London to put your theory into practice, identifying architectural styles and experimenting with different lenses, composition, processing and editing.Full fee £239.00 Senior fee £191.00 Concession £155.00 - Writing and photography: text and image workshop Course start date: Wed 6 May 2026 (and 2 other dates)
Location on this date: Online
Tutors: Christina Dunhill, Shirley ReadWhether you are a photographer or a writer, this short course will give you ideas for combining words and images to discover new approaches and create new work.Full fee £299.00 Senior fee £239.00 Concession £194.00 - Advance your life drawing Course start date: Wed 6 May 2026 (and 2 other dates)
Location on this date: Keeley Street
Advance your practice of drawing the human figure from observation. You will be encouraged to consider anatomy and perspective in order to develop how you represent the human figure in space.Full fee £449.00 Senior fee £359.00 Concession £314.00 - Affinity photo: professional image editing Course start date: Fri 8 May 2026 (and 1 other date)
Location on this date: Keeley Street
Tutors: Michael HardingLearn about the potential and possibilities available to you when using Affinity Photo and develop practical skill and knowledge.Full fee £209.00 Senior fee £167.00 Concession £136.00 - Explore: GIF making for illustration Course start date: Sat 16 May 2026 (and 1 other date)
Location on this date: Keeley Street
Tutors: Sophie WolfsonThis one-day course is an introduction to creating animated gifs using hand-drawn illustrated images.
Full fee £89.00 Senior fee £89.00 Concession £89.00 - Introduction to photography Course start date: Wed 6 May 2026 (and 2 other dates)
Location on this date: Online
Tutors: Dominic HarrisDiscover the basics of photography to improve your photographs and impress your friends. Learn about shutter speed, aperture, photo composition, light and taking pictures in different environments. This course is perfect for complete beginners or for learning new skills. Please take this course before enrolling on our intermediate courses.Full fee £209.00 Senior fee £167.00 Concession £136.00 - Documentary photography and photojournalism Course start date: Wed 13 May 2026 (and 1 other date)
Location on this date: Keeley Street
Tutors: Holly Falconer, Catriona GrayA picture paints a thousand words. Develop your creative ability to communicate through photography and get a fascinating insight into the world of documentary photography and photojournalism. Work on assignments and location shoots, develop your technique and style, and explore the practical, theoretical and ethical dimensions of photojournalism.Full fee £389.00 Senior fee £311.00 Concession £253.00 - City Lit photography: developing practice and portfolioCourse start date: Sat 2 May 2026 (and 1 other date)
Location on this date: Keeley Street
This course is a natural follow on from City Lit photography projects VY844 & VY878.
You will work on a self-set project for the length of the course.Full fee £399.00 Senior fee £319.00 Concession £259.00
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